I’m a big planner, so my decision Friday afternoon to snatch up budget airline tickets to Barcelona for Saturday was about as spontaneous as I get. Guillaume and I had originally planned to spend the weekend in Marseilles but the French train strike quashed those dreams and we were looking at more rain after a very wet week if we stayed in Geneva. I started playing around with possible destinations on Kayak and eventually found tickets to Barcelona on Vueling for a pretty good price. “We may go to Barcelona,” I texted Gui around 2:30pm after he confirmed he was interested. “I will inform you after work.” By the time he got home, I had tickets and a hotel booked for our two-night stay, and had picked up a city map from the bookstore and withdrawn Euros for the trip. The next morning, we were off!
Three-Month Anniversary
It’s been exactly three months since we made the move to Switzerland and we’ve had quite the ride.
Vienna: A Taste of High Society
Hi everyone! We got back from Vienna a week ago and I’ve been dying to share photos, but the Apple “geniuses” had possession of my MacBook again so I had to wait patiently. Now that every piece of my laptop has been replaced at least once – this is its THIRD logic board – I’m hopeful that I can, at a minimum, get this post up successfully. Ready? Okay.
Keukenhof: The Disneyland of Tulips
As promised, here are some photos from our day at the famous Keukenhof garden just outside of Amsterdam. The park is open for two months each year and we went the second-to-last-day before the close of the 2016 season. Some of the flowers had seen better days, but there were still plenty of gorgeous blooms to feast on. I’ll let the photos speak for themselves. Enjoy!
Amsterdam: Bicycle Paradise
Amsterdam is just the coolest. I was a little worried that my expectations were so high it would be impossible to meet them, but the city’s spunky personality, gorgeous architecture and endless stream of bicyclists left me with quite the crush.
Lyon: For Meat Lovers
When we climbed aboard the train for Lyon Saturday morning, I had my sights set on having a fabulous meal in an authentic Lyonnais bouchon: I pictured rows of tiny tables with checkered tablecloths, complete with generous helpings of wine and delicious, fresh food. That scene totally exists in Lyon… if you like calf brains, foie gras or other adventurous meat dishes. I should have gotten the hint from our Lonely Planet France guidebook, which describes a local veggie restaurant as “manna from heaven for Lyon’s oft-neglected vegetarians,” but I was still completely unprepared for the lack of options at the little bistros dotting the city.
Weekend Update
I heard a new kind of noise coming from the pigeon lair this week:
Guys, the pigeons had a baby. Happy weekend!
Bern: A Charming Capital
I’m excited to share photos from our wonderful weekend in Bern, but first I should warn you: I’m currently on *hornet watch* so you’ll have to excuse any sloppiness. You see, I came home from French class and climbed up to the loft to open the shade on the skylight and almost brushed my hand against a giant hornet snuggled right into the edge of the wood. I jerked the shade back and screamed (perpetuating the worst female stereotypes, I know), but she didn’t move so I thought she might be dead. Wishful thinking, apparently: An hour later she started buzzing and my husband called the caretaker from his office to come “remove” her and look for a nest. Long story short, because she appeared to be nesting and we haven’t had the windows open, the caretaker said there may be a nest tucked out of sight and to keep an eye out. So as I continue to scan the loft for more yellow and black neighbors, here are the highlights of our trip to Bern!
DIY Apartment Decor
It’
s almost been a month since we moved into our apartment and I still have such a crush on it. I love the natural light that pours in from the skylights, the exposed beams and slanted wooden ceilings, and the sweeping views of the city from our top-floor perch. Today I’m set up at my desk in the loft since we finally procured an extension cord that can reach my little nook, happily sipping iced tea while I do some research for our upcoming travels, with fresh air filtering in from the skylight overhead. I think I may need to write a novel, simply to take full advantage of this perfect hideaway. Eh… maybe tomorrow.
In the meantime, I wanted to share a few photos of one of my recent home decor projects Continue reading
A Sunday at the Museum
Sundays in Geneva are very quiet, with nearly all of the stores, supermarkets and restaurants across the city shuttered for the day. That’s why I was super excited to discover that, not only is Geneva’s Musée d’Art et d’Histoire (art and history museum) open on Sundays, but it’s free and less than a five-minute walk from our apartment. The roof of the gorgeous building visible from the top of our loft? Yeah, it turns out that’s the museum.
The Plaid Shirt Diaries 